1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a bag or tote for baby supplies which additionally converts into a cot for sanitary support of the baby for diaper and/or clothes changing.
2. Background Information
As every mother knows, a baby requires constant care, wherever the baby is located. Providing the desired level of care necessitates use of baby care products such as diapers, powder, clothing, toys, bottles of milk, oil, and other items. The constant need for these baby care items makes it virtually impossible to transport an infant or baby without additional transport of the care products.
Recognizing the continuous need for this array of care items, parents or caregivers when travelling out of the home must carry some type of bag or tote for transporting and storing the items until needed.
Over the years, an assortment of "diaper bags" or totes have appeared on the market. Although identified as "diaper bags", these bags are also typically used to transport the mountain of other required baby care items. Overstuffed and overused, however, these bags, or their handles, frequently tear or rip.
Even those parents who opt to carry some type of tote or bag, however, are still burdened with concerns regarding the sanitary changing of the baby's diaper or clothing. The parents or caregivers of the child are frequently in a location that does not lend itself to sanitary conditions. Typically in public rest rooms, the parents must choose between lying the baby on a floor or on a counter top for changing, neither of which provide a sanitary support.
In an effort to solve the problem concerning sanitary baby changing conditions, many makers of standard diaper bags introduced a changing pad, usually with a plastic exterior. This pad typically comes with the diaper bag, folding into a shape that can be placed inside the diaper bag for transport with the other care items. Although the pad fits inside the diaper bag, the pad is usually extremely bulky and cumbersome, taking up much of the room needed for the other child care products.
Ironically, these pads often contribute to poor sanitary conditions as lack of space in the diaper bag typically forces the parent to leave the dirty diaper behind after changing instead of allowing for storage until proper disposal.
Other concerns remain even after the introduction of the portable changing pad. Although the child can be placed on the changing pad, avoiding direct contact with the floor or dirty counter top, many parents are still hesitant to place the pad on the dirty surface since the pad frequently comes into contact with other baby items after changing. Although many parents do choose to use the changing pad, it is often only for lack of a better alternative.